Insurance & Reinsurance market | CCR Re's blog

Parity will not improve without a change in mentality - Marlène Larsonneur - Women of Power

Written by CCR Re | Mar 9, 2022 6:27:49 PM

Can you introduce yourself?

Yes, my name is Marlène Larsonneur. I am 41 years old and have two children : a 10-year old girl and a 7-year-old boy. I joined CCR in 2015 and since 2016 I have been the Human Resources Director of the CCR Group. As such, I am in charge of HR policy for CCR and CCR Re with my team.

 

Can you tell us more about your background?

I went to the University of Paris I - Panthéon Sorbonne where I studied economics and social law. At the beginning of my career, I worked in various areas of Human Resources; training, personnel administration, payroll, HR development and in a wide variety of sectors; telecommunications, distribution and services. I then worked as a multi-site HR manager in France, then as a social relations manager in the transport and logistics sector before becoming HR Director.

 

What do you think about the balance between men and women in management and leadership position?

Academic studies and those of the major audit firms on this subject show that companies that do not have enough women in their management bodies suffer a greater loss of performance when a crisis comes up.

 

Since 2019, women make up 40% of the Group's executive committee. 38% of our managers are women, 52% of our employees are women.

 

Beyond the subject of parity, we have been conducting a very diversity-oriented HR policy within the CCR Group for several years. We promote gender diversity, as well as socially and culturally diverse environments, because we are convinced that this mix enables us to get better results. The proof lies in the economic performance of the Group.

 

Women in our company hold positions such as Operations Director, Information Systems Director, Financial Director, Training Manager, Information Systems Security Manager, Internal Audit Manager, Risk Management Manager, Mathematician, Actuary... the list goes on and on and I'm delighted.

 

What are the stereotypes about women?

Why don’t we reverse the question and ask, “What are the preconceptions about men?” One that comes to my mind is sometimes over-confidence in themselves.

 

To give more meaning to this topic, I think it would be good to stop sectoring, gendering and comparing men and women.

 

To me, what is key is to not make this type of distinction and consider the individual with his or her hard skills, experience and, above all, soft skills.

 

What would you say to women and men working in the reinsurance sector?

Parity will not improve without changing mentality, including among women. Women naturally censor themselves. They should have confidence in themselves, in their abilities and skills.

 

It seems to me that many men today have understood that including women in their professional environment is an asset. I think that companies that have made this change are more attractive, especially to the younger generation.

 

We are lucky at the CCR Group because our managers are pioneers in diversity and equality issues. They have been able to create a working climate and corporate values that have attracted a lot of talent so far and we hope that we will continue to develop this approach and work toward more diverse, social, cultural and intellectual equality.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Thank you Marlène